JPH08300996A - Knee placing device for driver - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reduce the fatigue of a right leg of a driver who steps an accelerator. CONSTITUTION: A knee placing device comprises a knee placing table 1 on which a right knee of a driver is placed, a supporting means 2 to support the knee placing table, and a holding means 3 to hold the supporting means in a turning or pulling-out manner. The holding means 3 can be provided not only on the right side of a driver seat (S) but also close to a forward part of the seat or the inner side of a right door. When in use, the driver turns (or pulls out) the knee placing table 1 at an optimum position to be fixed, and places his right knee. The right knee to step the accelerator is avoided to be in the hanging condition to reduce the load to the right knee. A position adjusting means or an elasticity providing means is provided on the device to further promote the comfort of the driving. A knee placing device of the type to press the right knee thereagainst where the right knee is placed can also be provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for effectively and inexpensively reducing the fatigue of the right foot of a driver of a car, truck, bus or the like who continues to step on the accelerator.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The comfort of driving is improved by improving the quality of a driver seat. In order to adjust the positional relationship between the driver's right foot and the accelerator, some driver seats allow front / rear adjustment, height adjustment, and tilt adjustment.The seat position is adjusted according to the individual driver's preference. It has been.

However, the conventional driver seat adjusting means does not always provide perfect comfort in the correlation between the driver's right foot and the accelerator pedal, and particularly in the case of long-distance driving, the foot pedal, particularly the accelerator pedal, is continuously stepped on. Fatigue often accumulated in the right foot. This is because the driver has to keep the right toe stepping on the accelerator in a semi-hollow state.In addition, many drivers' right crotch front part or right knee may be in a hollow state away from the driver seat. It was the main cause. When trying to fix and hold the right knee in the air at a predetermined position while continuing to step on the accelerator, the upper and lower muscles centering on the knee are forced to use muscle power that is not originally necessary for driving, and the muscles around the knee are fatigued. It was a cause of driver discomfort.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a device for easily reducing the fatigue of the driver's foot, especially the right foot on the accelerator pedal.

[0005]

The knee rest device of the present invention generally includes a knee rest on which the driver's knees (claim 1) or only the right knee (claim 2) are placed. When driving,
Especially during long-distance driving, the driver's knees are placed on the knee rest to make at least the right knee comfortable, and even if the right foot tip on the accelerator is kept in a semi-hollow state, the foot does not feel much fatigue.

The knee rest according to the present invention is generally freely movable between the non-use position and the use position by the driver's own manual operation or electric operation. It is further advantageous to enable the gradual fixing between the non-use position and the use position and to adjust the use position (claim 7). This is to take into account the difference in the foot length of individual drivers. The position adjusting means is provided with, for example, a position adjusting gear (tooth means) structure that acts between the supporting means and the holding means, and the position of the knee rest of the knee rest can be adjusted by a combination of the engaging action and the disengaging action of the gear structure. Position adjustment (including the withdrawal adjustment of claim 3 and the rotation adjustment of claim 4) is performed.

One specific example of the knee rest device of the present invention can be likened to a brake pedal structure of an automobile. One embodiment of the present invention is, like a normal brake pedal structure, a pedal (corresponding to a knee rest), a curved leg body (corresponding to a supporting means) under the pedal, and an underfloor structure portion (holding) for holding and storing the curved leg body. Equivalent to the means). The position when the brake pedal is not used corresponds to the position when the knee rest device is used, and the maximum use of the brake, that is, when the brake pedal is depressed corresponds to the time when the knee rest device is not used.

[0008] Although this knee rest can be completely fixed while the knee is in use, it is more desirable to elastically hold the knee by utilizing spring force or the like such as a car brake (claim 8). ). This is because a certain degree of freedom is given to the motion of the knee, the accelerator operation and the brake operation are facilitated, and the safety of the drive is enhanced.

The holding means for holding the supporting means for supporting the knee rest can be provided, for example, near the front part of the driver seat. For example, the lower side of the front portion of the seat, the inside of the seat, the right side of the seat, both sides of the seat, the inside of the door, and the like can be considered. There is no problem if the knee rest is exposed near the lower front part of the driver seat or inside the seat when the device is not used. However, safety requires careful consideration. If it is provided inside the right door, it may be preferable to store it so that it does not get in the way when not in use.

The supporting means of the knee rest device has a curved shape extending rightward from the knee rest stand to reach the right side of the driver seat, and the knee rest table is pivotable by the pivotable holding means provided near the right side of the seat. It can also be held and moved in position. The holding means rotates the curved support leg portion to vertically move the knee rest provided at the tip thereof. In order to enable fine adjustment of the use position of the knee rest device, for example, it is more desirable to add a gear structure for adjusting the rotational position to the holding means (claim 7). Further, for the same reason as described above, it is desirable that the knee rest device has an elastic structure by a spring force or the like (claim 8).

The knee rest device according to the present invention is provided near the inside of the vehicle on the right side of the driver's right knee (in the vicinity of the inside of the door on the driver side in the case of a right-hand drive vehicle), and the knee rest stand protrudes into the vehicle at an appropriate length during use. It is also possible to place the right knee of the driver stepping on the accelerator. It is preferable that the knee rest is housed in the housing means so as not to get in the way when it is not used. In this case as well, it is more desirable to provide the knee rest device with a utilization position adjusting means (claim 7) and an elasticity imparting means (claim 8).

The same effect can be expected if the right knee is held in contact with the right side instead of being placed on the right knee of the driver (claim 5). That is, a state in which a protruding knee rest is provided inside the vehicle near the right side of the driver's right knee (near the inside of the right door in the case of a right-hand drive vehicle), and the right side of the right knee of the driver stepping on the accelerator is in contact with the knee rest, that is, , The right knee is held in a state where the right knee is pressed against the knee rest by the gravity action of the right foot in a substantially right direction. Even with such a structure in which the knee is not placed, the right knee does not float in the hollow state, and fatigue to the right leg is significantly reduced. It is also convenient to provide a housing means for the contact holding type knee rest device and store the knee rest table when not in use (claim 6). Providing elastic means (Claim 8) for this type of knee rest device makes the drive more comfortable and safe, and providing positioning means (Claim 7) ensures greater comfort to the individual driver. To do.

[0013]

According to the knee rest device of the first aspect of the present invention, both knees of the driver are placed to enhance the comfort of driving.
According to the knee rest device of the second aspect, only the right knee of the driver is placed to improve the comfort of driving. In the knee rest device of the third aspect, the holding means is of a pull-out type, and the driver pulls out the knee rest table manually or electrically to use. In the knee rest device according to the fourth aspect, the holding means is a rotating type, and the driver uses the knee rest table by rotating the knee rest table manually or electrically. The knee rest device according to claim 5 is intended to provide driving comfort without placing the right knee of the driver. The right foot will be slightly open, but the convenience is further improved. It may be suitable for male drivers. The knee rest device according to a sixth aspect is an improved type of the knee rest device according to the fifth aspect, and by providing the accommodating means, the appearance beauty when not in use and the usability of the vehicle interior space are further enhanced. The knee rest device according to claim 7 is capable of adjusting the position of the knee rest so as to further enhance the comfort of driving. The knee rest device according to claim 8 imparts elasticity to the knee rest so as to further enhance the comfort and safety of the drive.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A knee rest device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a knee rest device for both knees of a type that is stored in front of a driver seat (S). A curved support means 2 is provided below the knee rest 1, and a part of the support means 2 is housed in a holding means 3 (broken line) which is also a curved storage means. The length of the knee rest 1 may be about the width of the seat, and the width may be several centimeters. Other than the illustrated shape, for example, a cylindrical shape may be used. In order to hold the knee comfortably, the surface material is preferably made of a soft material such as leather, cloth or vinyl, and if a soft material such as rubber or urethane is used on the inside, the comfort is further improved. As a material for manufacturing the knee rest device of the present invention, a general material which is considered to be optimal in any case may be appropriately selected. When the knee rest apparatus of this embodiment is not used, the support means 2 is the holding means 3
Is stored and held in. The storage / holding means 3 may be of an embedded type in the front of the driver seat (S) (not shown).

Although the fixing means for the knee rest is not shown,
The fixing means or the locking means used in the present invention in general may be a conventional method which is considered to be optimal according to various aspects of the device of the present invention. As an example, the storage holding means 3 has a gear structure (a plurality of lateral groove structures, tooth structures, etc .: not shown).
And a structure (not shown) corresponding to the support means 2 so as to engage / disengage with the position of the knee rest 1 (height, etc.) can be adjusted. Further, for example, when a coil spring is arranged in the holding means 3 (not shown), it is also advantageous to give elasticity to the knee rest device by utilizing a spring force. As for the elasticity imparting means, a general conventional method is sufficient, and there is no problem in its adoption. Such elasticity imparting means and position adjusting means can be easily provided as appropriate by using the ordinary technique considered to be the best in accordance with the embodiment of the present invention. The effects thereof have been described above, and therefore, although not mentioned below, they can be appropriately used in any of the embodiments.

The knee rest device for the right knee of FIG. 2 includes a pivotable holding means 3 provided on the right side of the driver seat (S). The knee rest 1 is moved up and down between the use position and the non-use position by the turning action of the turning holding means 3. The knee rest may be just the right knee. The knee rest 1 may be in the shape of a cylinder.

As shown in FIG. 3, the knee rest device may be embedded in the right front corner of the seat. In this embodiment, the knee rest 1 is manually or electrically lifted by a driver during use. The supporting means (2) and the holding means (3) are provided below the knee rest 1 (not shown). It is desirable to provide height (position) adjusting means and elasticity imparting means for this type of device as well.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the knee rest device for the right knee. The columnar knee rest 1 is supported by the support means 2.
The holding means 3 provided inside the right door (D) extends in the vehicle inward direction. The driver places his right knee on the knee rest and steps on the accelerator. It is desirable that the knee rest 1 be of a retractable type, for example, in the arrow direction so as not to get in the way when not in use. The protruding length of the knee rest 1 may be such that the driver slightly opens his right leg (not shown) and the right knee rests comfortably. It may be suitable for male drivers. The knee rest 1 may have a plate shape. It is desirable to provide a position adjusting means and a resilience applying means also in this type of device.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a knee-placing device of the right knee pressing type provided on the right door (D). Knee rest 1 of this knee rest device
The installation location of is on the right knee outside of the slightly open right foot of the driver stepping on the accelerator. Also in this case, it is advantageous to provide the position adjusting means (not shown). The size of the knee rest 1 is appropriate, but it is important to consider it so as not to get in the way when not in use. It would be even more convenient to use the storage means 4 and make the knee rest 1 retractable. It is also advantageous to provide a resilience means.

[0020]

[Effects of the Invention] The knee rest device of the present invention makes the right foot of the driver stepping on the accelerator comfortable and relieves fatigue to the foot in any embodiment. The above examples are merely for the purpose of explaining the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. If you have ordinary skill,
It will be easy to improve the above embodiment. For example, the shape and size of the knee rest, the shape and size of the supporting means, the shape and function of the holding means including the accommodating part and the accommodating part, the position adjusting means and the elasticity imparting means, etc. Can also be changed, and will be an easy task for a person of ordinary skill. However, those improvements are within the scope of the invention. The scope of the present invention should be judged only from the claims of the present invention.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a knee rest device for both knees of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the knee rest device for a right knee of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the knee rest device for a right knee of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing still another embodiment of the knee rest device for a right knee of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a knee rest device of the right knee contact holding type according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Knee rest 2 Supporting means 3 Holding means 4 Storage means S Driver seat D Car door

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A knee rest apparatus for placing both knees of a driver, including a knee rest stand for placing both knees, a support means for supporting the knee rest stand, and a holding means for holding the support means in a selected position. The knee rest apparatus is held in a non-use position when the present knee rest device is not used, and is held in a use position when the present knee rest device is used. 2. A knee rest device for placing the right knee of a driver, comprising a knee rest for placing the right knee, a support means for supporting the knee rest, and a holding means for holding the support means at a selected position. The knee rest apparatus is held in a non-use position when the present knee rest device is not used, and is held in a use position when the present knee rest device is used. 3. The knee rest device according to claim 1, wherein the holding means is a pull-out type means. 4. The knee rest device according to claim 1, wherein the holding means is a rotation type means. 5. A knee rest device for contacting and holding the right knee of the driver in a substantially right direction, including a knee rest provided inside the vehicle near the right side of the right knee of the driver, and A knee rest device characterized in that the knee rest device is held by contacting in a substantially rightward direction by gravity. 6. The knee rest device according to claim 5, further comprising a housing means for housing the knee rest device, wherein the knee rest device is accommodated in a non-use position when the present knee rest device is not used. . 7. The knee rest device according to claim 1, further comprising utilization position adjusting means. 8. The knee rest device according to claim 1, further comprising elastic means.